Speaking of Dividends

Shareholders Back Buffett on Payout

Bucking the dividend trend, Berkshire Hathaway holders voted overwhelmingly to reject a proposal for a payout.

Few companies can justify holding tens of billions of dollars in cash on their balance sheets without paying a dividend. Shareholders want the money to be invested profitably, or returned to them as a dividend or buyback.

But one company sitting on a $49 billion cash pile is getting no such pressure -- in fact, shareholders are adamant that the chairman use that cash as he sees fit.